Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 40, Number 40, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 24 January 1908 — Readers Should Be Thinkers Too. [ARTICLE]

Readers Should Be Thinkers Too.

T >iß article is prompted by tie fact that 8o much of what ia printed in the metropolitan papers is aimed to deceive. The commercial tendency of all or almost all the great dailies has created a deaire for moneyed results that hras hung a shield over the conscience of the publisher and dominated every editor by the will of the business office. There are no editors of the Greely kind, who wrote every word with a positive couviction, and whose utterances and opinions jreverbrated from Atlantic to Pacific. It is not so much that there are leasable men employed on the [editorial staffs of the city papers, but that they are not the paper owners and "are not privileged to say what they think. The business manager tells the editor that he must support oue measure aud reject auother, not hissed on any hoses*;osevietion but douiiuated by the dollar acquiring idea

There ere some people who know this and who read [between the lines, bat it is unsatisfactory to know that the paper ouepays for is devoting its taient to deceive its readers, lurecent years the politi cial newspapers have given way to the commercial ones, and in no city iu the country ha< the result been more unfortunate than in own state capital. The grand old Journal, brave aud loyal, sank |beneath the aggression of the dollarpeeking papers. The (staunch democratic organ, the [Sentinel, “h 1 ways a democrat’ K , was forced to mbmit to the paper that placed cash above conviction. The resalt is that the two leading papers of Indiana are the News and the Star. Tbey have penetrated the Chicago field in northern Indiana, and a goodly number of them come to Jasper county. Their policy is the dollar. They can not be called independent, airless one figures that Independence is alone a trait ot making all matters published both news and editorial, snbeerve to the revenue receipts. Republicans over the state wto are heartily in favor of harmony, and who are Dot opposed to the candidacy of Vice-President Pair-

banks, are. glad 10 see the state papers es pause his cause, and the News and Star would, as politically neutral newspapers, do Wrong*l»bt to support him, but this support should be based on his good qualities of states manship and should not embody a contemptible, falsifying criticism of any of his competitors for the nomination. These papers every day are crowded with the most outrageous falsehoods regarding the administration and the attitude of President Roosevelt toward and in tavor of the Taft candidacy. All manner of foolish alliances are alleged and the most trivial mole hills are enlarged for the purposes of misrepresentation into great mountains of vicious blunders. The purpose is to- discredit not only President Roosevelt but Secretary Tafi, and to do so every method of deceit is praeticed. It becomes the duty of readers of these newspapers to give what they read some thought To ask a reason for the pronounced attitoie of these papers to the President and the administration, to recall that prior to last fall every paper practically in the country was praising the administration, and that all of ns, farmers, business men, professional men, mechanics, and laborers were giving the level-headed methods of President Roosevelt credit with the excellent conditions. What has there been in the ad. ministration that offers opportu nity for criticism 1 ! More than auything else it is its attitude towards law enforcement in the pjiuLhment of illegaly organized capital. There are three views to be taken ot this. The first is that of the Bryan democrats who have contended that there was not enough of it, and who have ad vocated a destructive attack with soliastic tendencies on successful business corporations. The second that of thecorpoiatiouH themselves, whose idea is the protection of the methods of the large combinations of money without regard to the

pooplc < r the law, and who would, if iu power, establish a couditibiTol such dangerous piivileges that the entire country would be at the mercy of the trusts. The third embodies that great middle class that, i-respective of political party affiliation, has endorsed the prosecutions of the administration so far made, and that has looked with approval born of confidence, and wilt exp ictatiou strengthened by vigorous aad will-timed pro; ecutious. This latter class includes all those who want the financial affairs of the country clarified, who want it done as Rooievelt had been doing it, and who are not willing to either retrograde or become un btlanced in future admimstriftious. William H. Taft is pled ed by his support of the President to carry ou this work, stud he has behind him au absolutely clean public life, «s lawyer, judge and diplomat. The people must not be deceived by the designs of commercially con trolled uewspayers, but must ic hearse the accomplishments of tee last few years, and decide for themselves whether they had not best look for the best interests of government from a man of the Roosevelt type. Let there be no backing up by the American people. L;t us think while we read.